A faculty member at a school for hearing-impaired students was sentenced to 12 years in prison for raping a disabled student, court officials here said Thursday.

The Gwangju District Court sentenced the 63-year-old former administrator of Gwangju Inhwa School in Gwangju, about 330 kilometers south of Seoul, to 12 years in prison for sexually assaulting an 18-year-old student in April 2005. The administrator, only identified by his surname Kim, was also ordered to wear an electronic anklet for 10 years following his release.

The penalty, much heavier than the seven-year sentence prosecutors sought for Kim, comes as a local box-office hit, "Dogani," whose English title is "The Crucible," has sparked widespread public outrage.

The film vividly depicts the story of Gwangju Inhwa School teachers and staff who committed repeated sex crimes against a number of students over five years from 2000.

Police launched a re-examination of the assaults and arrested teachers and employees, including Kim.

"There are growing calls to beef up punishment for perpetrators of sexual abuses against disabled people," the court said.

Also, Kim was charged with physically abusing another 17-year-old student who had witnessed the crime. The victim reportedly attempted to commit suicide afterward. (Yonhap)